Coverage of the public service pay talks, which ended inconclusively just before the break, has intensified over the last week, as Building Momentum expired on 31st December and as the affiliate public service unions prepare to meet on Thursday to finalise the details of industrial action ballots.
Today's Irish Examiner editorial addresses the mounting prospects for industrial unrest, while the Business Post led yesterday with 'strikes loom' and its editorial adopted notably hostile rhetoric, describing the unions as 'rabid' and union pay claims as 'incessant'...what an interesting start to the new year! Elsewhere, the Irish Times and Indo provided slightly more sober coverage of anticipated developments last week.
Elsewhere, the Irish Examiner considers the 'very busy' year for trade unions that was 2023, while the Indo reported last Friday that bomb threats have been posted on Siptu’s Twitter/X account in response to the 'Ceasefire Now' banner on Liberty Hall.
In other news, another spring cost-of-living package has been ruled out by Minister for Finance Michael McGrath while he's indicated that taxpayers are in line for further USC and income tax cuts in this year’s budget. Maternity staff are commuting to work for up to 2½ hours a day because they cannot afford to live in Dublin, and Cillian Murphy bags the Golden Globe for Oppenheimer.
Zen
Every year the Irish Film Institute marks the closure of the festive season with a screening of John Huston's masterful adaptation of James Joyce's short storyThe Dead. I was at this year's screening at the weekend, introduced by cast member Ingrid Craigie.
Among her anecdotes from the 1987 production was the role played by the head of the Teamsters union in getting the film made. The actors guild (SAG) were not happy to have five actors from Ireland join the US production. A little gentle insistence by the Teamsters ("Wouldn't it be a shame if this film didn't get made?") helped grease the wheels, and the rest is history.
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